Accents and dialects attracted record numbers of members to meetings for Cleveland's Retired Men's Association.

Retired school teacher Vic Wood received bumper audience figures when he gave a talk about local dialects. Mr Wood highlighted the difference between accents using proper English, compared with dialects which use words specific to an area.

A second talk about Britain's worst railway disaster, by retired ICI officer Roy Bealby, was heard by 68 association members.

Mr Bealby revealed the series of errors leading up the five-train rail crash, which killed 226 people, in Scotland on March 22, 1915.